Olympus XA-2 The Street Shooter

The XA-2 is a very compact 35mm camera capable of producing high-quality photographs. It features a timer, focus control, and manual ASA settings. Optional accessories include a flash, tripod, and case. It was made during the 1980s.
I bought this cute, unloved camera secondhand in the flea market before I knew the difference between an XA and an XA-2. It still turned out to be a competent zone focusing snapshot camera. I carried it in my glove box for several years where it earned some cosmetic scratches to it's revolutionary camshell case but in all that time of extreme temperatures and constant jostling as my car camera it never failed me.

The XA-2 is a nice point and shoot but the XA is a real, much more versatile camera with a better lens in the same sized package. Instead of the zone focusing of the XA-2 the XA has a real rangefinder and aperture priority for more control than the XA-2’s programmed exposure.

The XA-2 has a wonderful feel to it, it’s got a fast sharp lens, manual film advance, and 3-step zone focusing. Most of the time, you can hold it in the palm of your hand, open it, point, and shoot, the default setting works well for most shots except closeups and low-light landscapes.

Put an XA-2, a spare battery, and a tripod into a pocket bag, and you have an extremely portable kit that you can bring anywhere and that takes incredible pictures.The first step in photography is having a camera with you to catch the shot, after all…

I have taken many many pictures with this camera, it is one of my all-time favorites. It will quickly spoil you with its small size, sharp lens, great metering, and ease of use.

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